Genetic factors that naturally protect people from Covid-19: Study
Two recent papers by Brazilian researchers have added to the scientific understanding of the genetic factors that protect people from SARS- COV-2 infection or prevent progression to severe Covid-19.
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WASHINGTON: Two recent papers by Brazilian researchers have added to the scientific understanding of the genetic factors that protect people from SARS- COV-2 infection or prevent progression to severe Covid-19. The first describes the findings of a study involving a group of resilient older people aged 90 or more, while the second examines a case of severe Covid-19 in identical twins, only one of whom had long-term symptoms of the disease.
Since 2020, researchers in several countries, including Brazil, have been looking for genes that confer protection against the novel coronavirus, either preventing infection or avoiding progression to severe disease, in the hope that this knowledge will make a vital contribution to the development of vaccines and treatments for viral diseases.
"If we can really prove that some genes promote resistance to SARS-COV-2, the same may also be true for other viruses. More research can then be based on these findings to try to understand the mechanisms underlying this resilience and develop medications that enhance protection against viral infections," Mayana Zatz, and lead author of the articles published in "Frontiers in" journals, told Agencia FAPESP.
Zatz is Professor of Human and Medical Genetics at the University of Sao Paulo's Institute of Biosciences (IB-USP), and heads the Human Genome and Stem Cell Research Center (HUG-CELL), one FAPESP's Research, Innovation and Dissemination Centers (RIDCs).
